Why we’re thankful

In light of the Thanksgiving holiday, we at Community Media would like to offer reasons we are thankful.

We’re thankful for the First Amendment, which has led to a vigorous debate in our office, our neighborhood and our country. As a result we’re thankful for a courageous new spirit in America that so adamantly seeks change for the better and offers a needed perspective into our everyday lives.

We’re also thankful for the really inept Republican presidential field, which has provided ample laughs as a result of “Saturday Night Live” ’s parodies of the G.O.P. debates.

Please, Herman Cain, don’t leave us too soon.

On a more serious note, we’re thankful for our jobs, even the fact that we have them in this current economy. Beyond that, we’re thankful to have a job that is always exciting and stimulating — covering stories like Occupy Wall Street, for example, that “occupy” both our minds and passions, and that entail covering a neighborhood as exciting and as important as Lower Manhattan. We’re thankful that this community newspaper reaches beyond the boundaries of Lower Manhattan and finds its way into the living rooms of people all over the country.

We’re thankful for our local politicians, who never fail to carry our concerns and our worries to Albany, or to Washington, D.C.

We’re thankful for the local representatives that fight every day for our welfare, for the issues that define, disrupt and enhance our daily lives.

But within our office, one notion prevails: family. We are thankful for our families’ good health and we’re thankful for the people that care about us and who we care about. Because, all too often, our lives are influenced by forces that our colleagues, bosses, sources, clients and politicians cannot control. Supportive family members, friends and co-workers make all the difference in our lives.

Some of us have friends and family that reside within walking, commuting or driving distance, that we will see this holiday. Others are left with only a phone call home, an e-mail or Facebook to communicate the loneliness they feel when the holiday season sets in.

When family is far away, friends and co-workers can help fill the void.

One thing, however, is for certain, Downtown Manhattan is a special community. We’re bound together by the issues we all face today and have faced in the past — like the tragedy of 9/11 and the rebirth that has followed — and will be facing in the days, weeks and years to come. Together, we will meet the challenges.

But now is a time for giving thanks — including for that spirit of community that defines our lives and our world.

So, to the best that we are each able — let’s occupy ourselves with enjoying a great Thanksgiving and giving thanks.